CULTURE: Class, Not Race, War Grips Zimbabwe

Blamed, along with the opposition party, for a lot that has gone wrong in Zimbabwe, many among the white minority have packed their bags and left.

RELIGION: Worried Malaysians Hope for a Transformation in New Pope

While Pope Benedict XVI, previously the Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, formally begins his pontificate on Sunday after being inaugurated in an open-air mass celebrated in Rome's St. Peter's Square, certain Malaysian Catholic activists and clergy are worried that the church under the new pope would become more insular and clamp down on movements working with the poor.

HEALTH-KENYA: From Bangkok, They Brought Hope for Millions Living With AIDS

Smoke from open fires roasting slabs of meat and maize cobs rises alongside a rutted, dusty road in Kangemi, a slum north-west of Kenya's capital Nairobi.

RIGHTS-PERU: ‘Transitory’ Reserves for Mashco-Piro Indians

In Alto Purus province, in the far west of the Peruvian Amazon jungle, plans are in the works to create the first reserve for an indigenous group that has almost no outside contact: the Mashco.

RIGHTS: Religious Profiling Sparks Federal Lawsuit

Three influential civil rights groups charged Wednesday that border control tactics used by the Department of Homeland Security discriminate against U.S. citizens solely on the basis of their religion and ethnicity, in violation of the U.S. Constitution.

RELIGION: EU Greets Ratzinger’s Election, Turkey Concerned

Europe has cautiously welcomed the election of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as the new pope, but there are also concerns over his view of Turkey's bid to join the European Union.

RELIGION-GERMANY: Pride and Concern After Papal Election

Though most Germans seem to be proud that a compatriot has been elected pope, those who are reform-minded raise concerns over the ability of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger - now known as Pope Benedict XVI - to alter the course from his staunch conservatism.

HEALTH-SOUTHERN AFRICA: Teenage Suicides on Upswing

Passions of the heart rather than financial woes account for a growing number of suicides in Southern African nations as diverse as prosperous and well-developed South African and small, traditional Swaziland.

LATIN AMERICA: New Pope a Disappointment to Progressives, Women

"Today was a sad day," Maria José Rosado Nunes, head of the Brazilian branch of Catholics for the Right to Decide, said in response to the selection of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as the new pope, a decision that in Latin America also disappointed progressive members of the clergy and married priests.

RELIGION: We Have a Pope, and a Potential Rift

The election of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as the new pope Tuesday has dismayed progressive groups within the Catholic Church. They had hoped a new pope would bring a change from the conservative traditions of John Paul II.

RELIGION: It Had to Be Ratzinger After All

All the bells in Rome were pealing as cardinals elected Joseph Ratzinger the 265th leader of the Roman Catholic Church.

MIGRATION-BRAZIL: The Deadly Lure of the "Gold Curtain"

-"America", the latest hit soap opera in Brazil, has yet to lead to a boom in emigration to the United States.

SIERRA LEONE: Female Circumcision Used As a Weapon of Political Campaign

‘'It is not an easy job. Sometimes I get booed and taunted. At crucial moments I get chased out of places where the practice is much more prevalent,'' complains 34-year-old Ann Marie Caulker, who is championing the campaign to end the age-old tradition of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

/ARTS WEEKLY/LATIN AMERICA: Indigenous Filmmakers Give Glimpse into Their World

A painter's search in the Peruvian jungle for plants that would reproduce the colour blue served as the inspiration for the grand-prize winner at the latest Anaconda Awards, a regional competition for videos made in South America's tropical rainforests.

RELIGION: South Asia Turns to Sufi Saint to Solve Kashmir Conflict

The realm of the spirit world is very much alive in South Asia, and few would ever dare offend their spiritual masters for fear that evil would befall them. Blessings are much sought after for good luck - something that was not lost on Pakistan President Gen. Pervez Musharraf during his historic visit to India over the weekend.

RELIGION-LATIN AMERICA: Praying to God – and Betting on the Next Pope

If the Catholic Church worked like a democracy, the chances that the next pope would be from Latin America would be high. Around 45 percent of the world's Catholics live in this region, and at least nine of the cardinals whose names are mentioned as possible candidates are Latin American.

RELIGION: New Pope May Have to Reconsider Role for Women

A new pope will have to reconsider the position of the 'other half of the faithful', women leaders in the Catholic Church say.

POLITICS: Britain, Germany Push For Dialogue With Islamic World

British and German experts met earlier this week to seek new ways of engaging with the Islamic world to enhance mutual understanding and reduce stereotypes.

RELIGION: Disputes Grow Around Ratzinger

Cardinal Josef Ratzinger is emerging as the most talked about, and the most controversial candidate in the selection of a new pope.

CULTURE-CHINA: Sexually Charged Political Satire Slips Into Internet

When Chinese censors axed a novella about steamy sex in the People's Liberation Army, it was the timing of its appearance earlier this year that proved most crucial in effecting the ban.

HEALTH-KENYA: Women Die Silently, Invisibly From Pregnancy

Last week’s call by the United Nations Population Fund to governments to increase spending on reproductive health may prove to be hard for Kenya to implement. Kenya has no budgetary allocation for reproductive health.